My wife and I are planning to purchase a flat in Southampton and are in fact using a Southampton conveyancing firm. Within the last couple of days our solicitor has sent a preliminary report and documents to look through in anticipation of exchanging contracts shortly. Britannia have this evening contacted us to advise us that there is now an issue as our Southampton solicitor is not on their approved list of lawyers. Is this a problem?
When purchasing a property with the benefit of a mortgage it is standard for the purchasers' solicitors to also represent the purchaser's lender. In order to act for a bank or building society a law firm has to be on that lender's conveyancing panel. An application has to be made by the law firm to the lender to become a member of the lender's panel and there are increasingly strict criteria which the firm has to satisfy and indeed some lenders now require their panel members to be part of the Law Society’s Conveyancing Accreditation Scheme. Your property lawyer should contact your lender and see if they can apply for membership of their conveyancing panel, but if that is not viable they will instruct their own solicitors to act. You are not legally obliged to appoint a law firm on the lender’s conveyancing panel and you may continue to use your own Southampton solicitors, in which case your legal fees may increase, and it will likely delay the transaction as you have another set of people involved.
We have very assertive vendors who has insisted on a lock out agreement with a deposit of 5k. Is it wise to enter into such agreements?
Exclusivity contracts are contracts binding a property seller and purchaser giving the buyer a ‘clear field’ to purchase the property for a set period of time. For all intents and purposes, a lock out is a document specifying that you will have a contract at a later time being the main conveyancing contract. It tends to be used for buyer protection though in many situations, the owner may enjoy an upside from such agreements as well. There are many positives and negatives to using an agreement but you need to check with your solicitor but note that it may result in incurring more in conveyancing fees. In light of these reasons these agreements are unusual in relation to conveyancing in Southampton.
My wife and I are purchasing a house in Southampton. It might be a silly question but how we can trust a solicitor? At some point we have to send money into their account. What protection do we have from them run away with our monies?
Be assured that all money in a Solicitors client account is 100% safe, and even if your Solicitor ran off with it, the Law Society would reimburse you fully.
It is unclear whether my mortgage offer obliges me to make sure the lease term for the flat is extended prior to the completion date. I have called my Southampton building society branch on numerous occasions and was told it wasn't an issue and they will lend. My Southampton conveyancing solicitor - who is on the bank conveyancing panel- called to say that they refuse to lend based on their specific requirements. Who do I believe?
As long as the conveyancer is on the mortgage company approved list, they must comply with the Council of Mortgage Lenders’ Handbook conditions for the bank. Unless your lawyer obtains specific confirmation in writing that the mortgage company will go ahead, your lawyer has no choice but to refrain from exchanging contract and committing you to the purchase. We would suggest that you ask the bank to contact your lawyer in writing confirming that they will accept the number of years left on the lease.
Planning on purchasing a apartment in Southampton. I have received an online quote from a licenced conveyancer, which states: "There will be no charge for dealing with the Lender if you are obtaining a mortgage". I take this to mean that there will be no additional fee if the solicitor is on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel. I wanted to make sure it means there will be no additional fees for dealing with the mortgage.
They are simply saying that the cost for acting for the lender is included in the fee being quoted. It is worth you checking that the Southampton lawyer is on the Virgin Money conveyancing panel.
Yesterday I discovered that there is a flying freehold issue on a property I put an offer in last month in what was supposed to be a simple, no chain conveyancing. Southampton is the location of the property. Can you shed any light on this issue?
Flying freeholds in Southampton are not the norm but are more likely to exist in relation to terraced houses. Even where you use a solicitor outside Southampton you must be sure that your lawyer goes through the deeds thoroughly. Your bank may require your conveyancing solicitor to take out an indemnity policy. Some of the more diligent conveyancing solicitors in Southampton may ascertain that this is not enough and that the deeds be re-written to give you the most up to date legal protection. If so, the next door neighbour also had to sign up to the revised deeds.It is possible that your lender will not accept the situation so the sooner you find out the better. You should also check with your insurance broker as to whether they will insure a flying freehold residence.
Hoping to buy a property located in Southampton and I am already nervous. I couldn't find anything specific about Southampton. Conveyancing will be needed in due course but do you know about the Southampton area? or perhaps some other tips you can share?
Rather than looking online forget looking online you should go and have a look at Southampton. In the meantime here are some basic statistics that we found
I am 14 days into a residential purchase having been recommend to conveyancers by the estate agent to carry out the conveyancing in Southampton. I am am very dissatisfied with the quality of service. Can you help me find new conveyancers?
A conveyancer would have to be very bad to suggest diss instructing them. Has the mortgage been generated? In the event that it has you will need to advise them of the new contact details and get the mortgage documents are re-issued. The conveyancer needs to be on the lenders approved list to avoid added charges and delays. So that should be your starting point. The find a solicitor tool should help you find a lender approved lawyer for your conveyancing in Southampton